Quantitative Research: Definition, Methods, Types, and Examples

Leukemia is a common pediatric illness that has strong effects on the health of the children including chronic pain. The pain associated with Leukemia is detrimental to the quality of life led by the child. It is, therefore, necessary for health professionals to manage the pain to improve the quality of the life of the child. Besides pain medication, music therapy is regarded as a potential to complement the traditional pharmacological interventions for children living with Leukemia. Music therapy has been used worldwide in clinical treatment of children (Stegemann et al., 2019). Quantitative studies have been carried out to determine the efficiency of music therapy as the primary pain intervention compared to pain medication. The purpose of this research critique paper is to analyze quantitative research articles concerning pediatric leukemia pain management using music therapy versus pain medication. The two articles are entitled “Music Therapy to Reduce Pain and Anxiety in Children with Cancer Undergoing Lumbar Puncture: A Randomized Clinical Trial” and “Impact of Music on Pediatric Oncology Outpatients”. 

Article 1 Summary 

The core purpose of this study was to investigate the impacts of music therapy on pain and anxiety in pediatric patients in the oncology unit. The sample population for the study was 40 children that were between the ages of 7 and 12 that had been diagnosed with Leukemia (Nguyen et al., 2010). The design method for quantitative research was a randomized control trial. Also, the study had a control group. Each of the pediatric patients was randomly selected and asked to pick an envelope that stated “music” and “no music”. While undergoing the procedure, all the participants were required to have headphones. Those that chose the “music” option selected favourite songs they would listen to. The pediatric patients began listening to the songs ten minutes before the procedure and continued until the lumbar puncture procedure was done. 

The method of data collection used was based on measurements of the Numeric Rating Scale. Participants rated their pain on the NRS before and after the lumbar puncture. Also, open-ended questions were asked to ten other children who underwent the lumbar puncture. During the trial, local anesthetics were used for children that chose “no music”. The findings of this study indicate that music therapy has powerful effects on pain management as compared to traditional pharmacology. The pain scores of the group that listened to music while undergoing the procedure were high and low before and after (Nguyen et al., 2010). The questions from the interview also produced valuable results to support the study. All of the ten children acknowledged having felt less pain when they listened to music as compared to the previous procedure where anesthetics were used for pain management instead of music. 

Article 2 Summary 

In their study, the authors acknowledge that music is widely used to enhance the well-being of patients. The study focused on pediatric outpatients. Children who had been diagnosed with leukemia and were in consolidation treatment served as their control. The children underwent the study during two visits. The sample population was of 47 children. The study was conducted at the pediatric oncology unit of Brenner’s Children Hospital located in North Carolina. The study was done for a period of 3 years, between May 2004 and 2007 (Kemper et al. 2008). The criteria for inclusion in the study was based on factors such diagnosis with either lymphoblastic leukemia or myelogenous leukemia, having an English-speaking parent or guardian, undergoing the induction phase of chemotherapy and had received their primary care at Brenner’s Children Hospital (Kemper et al. 2008). 

During the first visit, children would be kept in a quiet room and then undergo the chemo procedure. On the second, visit, however, the child would be put under rest in a room with music. At the beginning and end of each session, the child with the help of their parents was asked to complete the VAS 0-10 points scale that assessed well-being such as pain, relaxation, and energy versus stress, anxiety, and depression (Kemper et al. 2008). The particular music used for the study was Doc Children’s Heart Zones compact disk. The statistical analysis for the study was simply descriptive. Based on the findings, the study builds on subjective measures of well-being, of which pain management is one of them. Furthermore, the VAS scale used correlates with both pain and quality of life among pediatric oncology patients. The study concluded that music can impact pain and related stress during procedures. The study urges health professionals to integrate non-pharmacological interventions besides the use of opioids in pain management. 

Critique of Article 1 

To begin with, the study has a concise title. It indicates the purpose of the study which is to explore the effects of music therapy on pediatric patients in the oncology unit. The authors, however, should have been more indicative of the nature of the study. The article is also credible based on the researchers that conducted the study. Nguyen, together with the other scholars have all worked in the nursing context in higher institutions of learning. Another strength of the article is the presence of an abstract. According to (Creswell & Creswell, 2017) an abstract is critical for a quantitative study as it summarizes the variables being tested. Besides, the abstract provides the reader with a clue of what to expect throughout the study. The abstract made it easy to identify the relevance to the topic of interest. 

The methodology section clearly states the design approach to be used which was the randomized control trial and administration of a few interview questions. The quality of the study rests on the quantitative approach used as well as the tools used for data collection. (Creswell & Creswell, 2017) in their study reveal that quantitative research offers better standards of evidence in health care research and development. The explanation of the research instruments in detail has helped overcome the limitations of such as not using the right tools or asking the right questions. Sample selection has not been discussed in detail, which could be a weakness of the study. Although the sample size has been indicated, the study should have stated the reasons for having such a statistical number. 

Critique of Article 2 

Just as the previous study, this article has an abstract which is one of its core strengths. The abstract gives the reader a background of the study and a summary of the entire study. Another strength of the study arises from its use of detail for its subjects. The study particularly focused on pediatric patients at Brenner’s Children Hospital. Further, the study indicates that the measure for inclusion was based on the diagnosis of acute leukemia and other factors as aforementioned (Kemper et al. 2008). Also, a particular type of music was used for all children during the first and second visit. This eliminates from the study the limitation of sampling and music bias that could impact on the study. These are crucial elements in primary health care research and as such are strengths for the study. 

The methodology section, however, fails to state the specific approach for the quantitative study. Instead, the focus is on the VAS scale. The quality of the study is dependent on the quantitative approach used. The authors should have included a real discussion underpinning the approach and principles of quantitative research. Also, the data collection procedures are not concise which would be problematic for replication purposes. Besides the control group could have used another set of patients to eliminate bias. 

Overall, the evidence-based research is of high quality. The rationale stems from the use of randomized control trials as an approach for the quantative research. In addition, the quality of the articles has been cemented by the credibility of the study. Furthermore, scholars who conducted the study are from reputable institutions. However, I would recommend for future researchers in the field to include some of the weaknesses identified. These include longer spans for conducting the evidence-based study, as well as defining the particular approach for the quantative study. Furthermore, defining the quantative approach is critical for the quality of the study conducted 

In conclusion, the studies support the use of musical therapy for pain intervention as compared to medication. It is apparent from these studies that pain management is critical for quality of life during procedures for leukemia treatment in pediatric oncology units. For future research, the authors should mention the particular opioids or anaesthetics used for pain management. I would also recommend the use of music as compared to medication to help in pain management in a clinical setting. 

References 

Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2017).  Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches . Sage publications. 

Kemper, K. J., Hamilton, C. A., McLean, T. W., & Lovato, J. (2008). Impact of music on pediatric oncology outpatients.  Pediatric Research ,  64 (1), 105-109. 

Nguyen, T. N., Nilsson, S., Hellström, A. L., & Bengtson, A. (2010). Music therapy to reduce pain and anxiety in children with cancer undergoing lumbar puncture: a randomized clinical trial.  Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing ,  27 (3), 146-155. 

Stegemann, T., Geretsegger, M., Phan Quoc, E., Riedl, H., & Smetana, M. (2019). Music therapy and other music-based interventions in pediatric health care: an overview.  Medicines ,  6 (1), 25. 

Appendix 

Critical Appraisal Worksheet: Therapy Study Article 1 

Critical Appraisal Worksheet: Therapy Study Article 2